Samantha Eggar Movies

Burned-out, boozing crime novelist Bruce Simon Barker (John Ritter) emerges from his doldrums long enough to involve himself in a bizarre missing-persons case. At the urging of his police inspector sister (Samantha Eggar), Bruce investigates the disappearance of a baby. There have been no ransom demands, the baby's parents are (to put it mildly) dysfunctional, and the father of the child is cheating on his wife with her sister. At first, Barker figures that these sordid real-life intrigues might serve as inspiration for another of his crime novels, but the deeper he becomes enmeshed in the situation, the more he realizes that there is much, much more to the case than meets the eye. Meanwhuile, Barker must wrestle with the disintegration of his own marriage and the alienation of his daughter. Daphne Zuniga, Michelle Scarabelli and Roddy McDowell deliver standout performances as the sister-in-law, the baby's mother, and the family's shady attorney. Produced for Canadian TV under the title Loss of Faith, this film has since been shown on America's Lifetime network as The Truth About Lying. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A rich New England family succumbs to a twisted web of jealousy and greed when the family patriarch, (Brian Keith) catches everyone by surprise and leaves his business to Suzy (Liz Vassey), his daughter whom he hasn't seen in ages. Now every covetous member of the brood is swarming on the household like vipers, including Suzy's long estranged mother, who hasn't returned to the family she abandoned in years. They all want a piece of the pie-or better yet, the whole thing. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide

A Ghost in Monte Carlo is based on one of the millions of romance novels penned by Barbara Cartland. True to the Cartland canon, the story is set long ago (1875) and far away (The Riviera). Sarah Miles is top-billed as a pompadoured former madam, while Oliver Reed dispenses tons of Armor Star as a lascivious rajah. Christopher Plummer struts about bedecked with medals as a military hero, and Samantha Eggar is a mystery woman shrouded in black. But the story is carried by Lysette Anthony, the niece of Sarah Miles, who tries to break into upper-crust society--a goal impeded by a long-standing thirst for vengeance on the part of one of the older stars. A Ghost in Monte Carlo was produced in Europe by Sir Lew Grade, and first seen in the US over the TNT Cable Network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When his girl's life's in danger, this kickboxer, who'd sworn off the sport, must fight one last contest to save her. ~ All Movie Guide

Made for TV on a feature-film budget, Love Among Thieves stars Audrey Hepburn and Robert Wagner--but fails to be worthy of the talents of either star. Ms. Hepburn plays a widowed baroness and classical pianist, who steals three Faberge eggs from a museum in order to ransom her kidnapped fiance. En route to the "drop", Audrey is rescued from a mysterious assailant (Jerry Orbach) by suave stranger Robert Wagner. Wagner proceeds to demonstrate that he's not all he seems by swiping the valuable jeweled eggs. The rest of the film is a maelstrom of double-crosses, clinches and hairbreadth escapes, all evidently intended to emulate Hepburn's 1963 theatrical feature Charade and Wagner's popular 1960s TV series It Takes a Thief. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Samantha Eggar guest stars as psychic Laura Bennett, who has been experiencing eerie visions of her own murder. Though skeptical about Laura's ability to foretell the future, Magnum agrees to provide protection to the woman, while simultaneously attempting to collect his fee from a shifty previous client (Kenneth Mars). Need we add that both of Magnum's seemingly unconnected missions are inextricably linked together by episode's end? Meanwhile, Higgins (John Hillerman) becomes more insufferable than usual as he tries to put together a fundraising variety show. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

For the Term of His Natural Life, Australian novelist Marcus Clarke's epic tale of the hardships and deprivations of his native country in the 1830s, served as the basis for one of the most famous Australian films of the silent era. That was in 1927; 56 years later, Clarke's novel again went before the cameras, this time resulting in a three-part, six-hour TV miniseries. Colin Friels starred as Londoner Rufus Dawes, who thanks to treachery and deceit was arrested on a trumped-up charge and transported to a penal colony in Tasmania, while an impostor laid claim to his birthright. Eighteen years into his incarcaration, Rufus managed to escape, and was subsequently reunited with his sweet Sylvia (Susan Lyons), daughter of the colony's warden. Unfortunately, a happy ending was not in the cards for the hero and heroine. For the Term of His Natural Life aired over Australia's Nine Network in 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When it was first made available to television in 1978, the three-hour Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women was previewed to only a few carefully selected TV critics. Barred from the preview were those older columnists who would have most likely harbored pleasant memories of the Oscar-winning 1936 theatrical feature The Great Ziegfeld, which is approximately ten times the better film. The TV movie version stars Paul Shenar as Broadway showman Flo Ziegfeld, looking for all the world like a spoiled prep-schooler dressed up in his daddy's tuxedo. While the film admirably attempts to encompass every aspect of Ziegfeld's public and private life, the sense of beauty and grandeur, so vital to the success of the 21 "Follies" stage shows mounted between 1908 and 1931, is totally missing. The film's structure is curiously aloof: The four most important women in Ziegfeld's life dispassionately narrate the story, a couple of them "from beyond the grave." Valerine Perrine comes off best as actress Lillian Lorraine; Barbara Parkins struggles with a wavering foreign accent as Ziegfeld's first wife Anna Held (she even gets a "telephone scene" ripped off from The Great Ziegfeld's Luise Rainer); Pamela Peardon is shrill and unlikeable as dancer Marilyn Miller; and Samantha Eggar is saintly to the point of tedium as Billie Burke, the second Mrs. Ziegfeld. Those expecting to see an unending stream of Ziegfeld headliners will have to settle for fleeting cameos by "celebrity look-alike" actors playing Fanny Brice, Will Rogers and W. C. Fields. This is the sort of clichefest in which Ziegfeld announces that his greatest days are yet to come--just before we cut to a title reading "1929." Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women serves only one positive purpose--to whet the viewer's appetite for a cable-TV revival of The Great Ziegfeld. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this film, an unusual western town sports a population that awards status based on the number of people one can kill. When Lewis (Keir Dullea) is mysteriously transported there, he must struggle to stay alive and out of the way of Sheriff Frendlander (Jack Palance), the local hero who has killed more people than any other resident. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

The Killer Who Wouldn't Die was the original network title for the 1976 TV movie also known as Ohanian. Mike Connors plays Ohanian, an Armenian-American ex-cop who runs a charter boat service. He's pulled back into the investigation game when one of his old friends is killed in Hawaii by a foreign assassin. The Killer Who Wouldn't Die was the two-hour pilot for an unsold series starring Mike Connors. Had it been picked up, undoubtedly much would have been made by the publicity mills that Ohanian was Connors' real last name--just as we were constantly reminded that Sanford was the actual moniker of comedian Redd Foxx. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV rural horror film from director Burt Kennedy benefits from a fine cast and a tense Clyde Ware screenplay. Samantha Eggar and Stacy Keach play motorists held prisoner by a family of seven sweet-faced young orphans and their savage guard dogs. The children only want a mother and father but are willing to kill anyone who rejects them. Jon Savage co-stars with Robby Benson, who sang the theme song. All the Kind Strangers was initially telecast November 12, 1974. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide